Improvement in propelling-apparatus



` Brevoort Place, in the city of New York, doctor of 'pelling-strncture to the outer end of a horizontal shaft,

` the crank and` ordinary cog-wheel i some loss of power.

i working through a stuiug-box in the sternv of the aan? ernia;

HUNTER,

soenna :LettersPatent No. 97 ,924,

or NEW Yoan N. r.

dated-December 14, 1869.

"IMPROVEMENT `nv PRoPELLING-APPARATUS.

The -Schedgule referred to in these Letters P-atent and making part of the same.

Moy-

'loall `whom it amg/'concern l Be it known that I, ROBERT HUNTER, of No. 9

medicine, have invented an Improvement in the Profpeller for Steam-Vessels, for which Letters Patent ofthe United States of America were grant-ed to me on the 11th day of August, 1868. v y

This improvement consists in attaching the proworking through a` stuffing-boxer other guides, and connecting the other end of such shaft to the lower' end of a naked vertical lever, swung on an axis above its centre. y,

The propelling-structure, adj usted as afore described, is operated by an engine, attached to the upper end ofthe vertical lever, precisely as described` iu the specilication of the `invention for which Letters Patent of the United States, numbered 80,960, have already been granted me. l

The form of the propelling-structure may be made of any desired shape, round, square, oblong, oval, 85e., and the floats `placed either verticallyY or horizontally.

The engine may `be directly attached to the upper end of the lever by the connecting-rod of the piston, or the `oscillation of the lever may be obtained from a crank-movement. i In the former case horizontal engine nius't be employed, but in the latter, -either a vertical or horizontal engine will answer. Y

`Whenever it is desirable tomultiply the oscillation of the lever beyond the strokes of Ithe piston of the engine, this may readily be effected by employing gearing, but with It will be seen that the distinction between this invention andthe one for which Letters Pat-ent were granted me on the 11th day `of August, 1868, consists wholly in the employment of the horizontal shaft. In all other respects, the combination is precisely the 'lheadvantage `gained by connecting the vertical lever to the propelling-structure, by a horizontal shaft vessel, is threefold:

First it is yapplicable' to a class of canal-boats, coustructed with square sterns, which does not admit of the oscillation of the lever vunder the stern Secondly, the Alever. 'is protected from external injury by reason of being operated' wholly within the vessel, while; no change is made in the leverage-em-y ployed` for propulsion; and

i Thirdly, we get a more direct propelling-stroke.

This invention differs from all other propellers which are attached. to a horizontal shaft, working` through a stniing-box in the stern, in its greater simplicity of i construction, and in reciprocating the propelliugfstruci upper deck to the bottom of the hold.

lever is far greater than at iirst sight would appeaix By employing horizontal levers within the hull of a vessel, they are of necessity very short, whereas vertical levers may he employed which extend from the The length ofthe propelling-stroke depends on the length of the lever employed.

The distinction, therefore, between short horizontal levers, such as havephitherto been employed, and the long vertical lever used by me, in actual result-s is ,very marked.

very short stroke ofthe piston; and by increasing they length of the lever below the axis on which it swings, I give the water a greater mechanical advantage, and reduce the slip of the paddle to its minimum quantit lt' the object were to push the water before the pro pelliug-structure, a short lever would be the best adapted, but sinc'e the object is to make the water, against which the propeller impinges, as nearly as possible a fixed abutment, the lever should always be made as long as the vessel will allow, and the propeller diminished in size to vthat point which will barely prevent slip. It' the lever is short, the propeller must be large and. cumbersome. It' the lever is long, a` much smaller'propeller will obtain lthe same resistance from the water. In every case, to obtain a satisfactory propulsion, the length of the lever and the size of the propeller' must be so apportioned that it shall require more power to displace the water before the propelling-structure than to move the vessel. erIhe propeller should hold against the water, as to a x'ed Figure 3 is a perspective view of my propelling-apparatus, as externally arranged.

Figure 4 is. a perspective view, representing the lpropeller attached directly to the vertical lever, and the latter mounted reversibly in the transverse rock shaft. I

Figures 5, 6, and 7 represent various forms of propellers which may be used as substitutes for those shown in the other figures.

I get a long propelling-stroke for a A represent-s the long arm of a lever worked byv engine D, through the pitman E, connected to the short arm A.

B shows the eonneeting-gear, which attaches the lower extremity of the lever A to the horizontal shaft C, to which the propeller G is adjusted, either by means of the curved iron H or any other suitable contrivance.

S represents sturing-boxes, through which the horizontal shaft works, and

T, guides, employed with external arrangement of said shaft.

From the foregomg, it will be apparent that the re` eiprocating movement of the piston-rod P, moving in the engine D, will cause the lower end of the lever A to vibrate or oseillate between the points l k, and by means of the connecting-rod B, a direct action is given to the shaft C and propeller G.

The pivoted propeller-loats may be supported by suitable stop-bolts, which being withdrawn by a rod and wheel, permit the floats to fall through the frame and open in the opposite direction. This or other suitable device is employed to reverse the propellers, for changing the motion of the vessel.

When it is deemed unadvisable to employ the horizontal shaft outside the hull of a` vessel, in the manner described, the propeller may be directly attached to a iertieal lever adapted to turn upon its axis for reversing,or two or more such levers, so adjusted, may be oseillated at the side or under the run of a vessel, for the purpose of propelling the vessel.

By attaching the propellers to the long arm of the lever, so as to give the mechanical advantage to the water, which constitutes the resisting-medium,I'cause less disturbance or displacement of' water, and am th'us enabled to' use my device with good eect, especially in the propulsion of canal-boats, where a high speed is not required, andvwhere it is of especial importance to avoid undue agitation of the water,

I claim, as new- The combination and arrangement of the long leverarm A, short arm A', propeller-rod O, pivotloatpropeller G, and guides S or T, operating substantially as and for the purposes herein set forth.

To theabove specification of my improvement in propellers,1 have signed my hand,this 21stday'of September, A. D. 1868.

ROBERT HUNTER.

Witnesses:

K. BARTON, R. J. O. HUNTER. 

